Keep Out Guests are always welcome at the GreenHouse, but heat gain is not. For maximum efficiency, KB Home lined the inside surfaces of the block walls with rigid foam insulation and the cavities of the roof trusses with spray-foam insulation from Johns Manville. Thanks to the insulation, along with the use of Monier's cool roof tiles, the attic keeps a constant temperature. This combination allowed the builder to right-size the HVAC system with a 19-SEER, two-stage Carrier heat pump.
That's a Wrap Working hard to safeguard the house from moisture intrusion and the lawn from weeds are a variety of products from Typar/Fiberweb. Typar housewrap blocks water from entering the wall cavity but allows walls to breathe so moisture can escape. Peel-and-stick BA Series flashing protects window flanges, sill plates, and corners. BioBarrier under the front lawn protects the area from weeds and roots. www.typar.com.
Water Saver A D'Mand recirculation system from Uponor further advances the house's water-conservation and energy-saving story. Installed with a user-activated button and motion sensors, the system's pump recirculates cold water so hot water reaches the fixture in seconds. www.uponor-usa.com.
Air It Out Because the home is so tight, it needs a way to bring in fresh air. So, the team specified a Broan ERV90HCS energy recovery ventilator. The unit will replace stale air with fresh and reduce the burden on HVAC systems. Installed in the attic, the box includes washable foam filters, a high-pressure blower, and wall control panels. www.broan.com.
Pipe Dreams Uponor's PEX plumbing system delivers and moves water throughout the house. Easy-to-install AquaPEX is cross-linked polyethylene tubing that is flexible, durable, and kink resistant. It also does not corrode, pit, or promote scale buildup. In addition, AquaPEX Reclaimed Water Tubing delivers sink and shower water into a holding tank where it is filtered for irrigation use. www.uponor-usa.com.
Hot Stuff No need to pay for hot water when the sun will do it for free. The GreenHouse uses a solar water heating system from VELUX America. Its two collectors absorb the sun's energy to heat water and are tied to an 80-gallon water heater with electric resistance backup. www.veluxusa.com.
Bright Light VELUX America's Model TMR 010 Sun Tunnel brings much-needed light to the laundry room. Installed in the ceiling, the unit uses a highly reflective rigid tunnel that brings in daylight. It comes with a one-piece pitched metal flashing to prevent leaking, and a pre-assembled ceiling ring. www.veluxusa.com.
Control Yourself Instead of a traditional lighting control system, the house features a simple setup from Verve Living Systems. It includes a 10-channel controller that programs the lighting functions. Movable wireless switches use radio frequency technology to control lighting, receptacles, and temperature, while a vacancy sensor shuts off lights in unoccupied areas. www.vervelivingsystems.com.
Waste Not You don't achieve LEED Platinum by sending your construction waste to the landfill. In this case, the project team used Waste Management's local affiliate to divert 88 percent of its construction waste--including lumber, drywall, and rigid plastics--away from local landfills. On-site dumpsters separated waste types and facilitated sorting. www.wm.com.
Door Ways Wayne Dalton's 9700 steel garage doors feature a six-window Westfield insert and American Collection Aspen hardware. The doors also offer polyurethane foam insulation that provides an R-value of 10, a counterbalance system that houses the springs inside a steel tube, and pinch-resistant door panels. www.wayne-dalton.com.
Open Sesame A Wayne Dalton Genie ReliaG 800 opener powers the garage door. Its belt-driven 1/2-horsepower DC motor offers soft start and stop, quiet, smooth operation, and enough power to lift doors weighing up to 500 pounds. A wall console and a three-button remote are included. www.wayne-dalton.com.
Wash Up Laundry will be a snap with the help of Whirlpool Corp.'s Duet. The Energy Star-qualified steam washer features a stainless steel basket, five temperatures, and 14 cycles. The dryer (shown) has 7.5 cubic feet of capacity, five temperatures, and an Eco Normal cycle for extra energy savings. www.insideadvantage.com.
Wash Up Laundry will be a snap with the help of Whirlpool Corp.'s Duet. The Energy Star-qualified steam washer (shown) features a stainless steel basket, five temperatures, and 14 cycles. The dryer has 7.5 cubic feet of capacity, five temperatures, and an Eco Normal cycle for extra energy savings. www.insideadvantage.com.
Wide Openings Providing visual and physical access to the lanai and backyard grill is an impressive 16-foot-wide installation of WinDoor's 8000 series sliding glass panels. Each panel has a depth of 1 3/4 inches with 4 5/8-inch stiles and rails. Specified with low-E glass, the doors glide on a stainless steel system that stacks the 10-foot-tall panels to the side. www.windoorinc.com.
Killer Apps No modern-day kitchen would be complete without high-performance appliances such as these KitchenAid products from Whirlpool Corp.: An Architect II French door refrigerator provides 20 cubic feet of storage, while a 48-inch dual-fuel range (shown) offers six burners and a convection oven. www.insideadvantage.com.
Soak Up the Sun SunPower's integrated photovoltaic panels were installed on the southern and eastern roof facades for maximum exposure to the sun. www.sunpowercorp.com.
